This Echo is READ ONLY !   NO Un-Authorized Messages Please!
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Glenn Mahone/Bob Jacobs
Headquarters, Washington                        May 27, 2003
(Phone: 202/358-1898/1600)

RELEASE: 03-177

CHIEF OF STAFF COURTNEY STADD ANNOUNCES PLANS TO LEAVE AGENCY

     Courtney A. Stadd, NASA Chief of Staff and White House 
Liaison, today announced plans to leave the agency, effective 
July 4. Stadd, who led President Bush's NASA transition team 
and worked with two NASA administrators in helping to cast 
the strategic direction of the agency, plans to pursue 
opportunities in the private sector.

"I've been very honored to serve the President and my 
colleagues at NASA. Working at NASA, which I regard as one of 
the most dynamic and exciting agencies in the federal 
government, has truly been the dream of a lifetime. On top of 
that, I had the privilege to work for an Administrator who 
cares deeply about effective management and the welfare of 
the workforce. But I feel it's time to move on to new 
challenges and new opportunities," said Stadd in making the 
announcement.

NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe praised Stadd's dedication 
and loyalty to both the President and NASA. "Courtney has 
been a faithful public servant and a creative leader who 
knows how to motivate people and get things done," added 
Administrator O'Keefe. "He knows the aerospace industry, he 
knows NASA, and he knows how to articulate and carry forward 
the agency's goals and objectives."

He also helped Administrator O'Keefe lead the implementation 
of the President's Management Agenda, a comprehensive reform 
effort designed to look at how government goes about its 
business and how it treats the people it serves.

In recent months, Stadd has led numerous important NASA 
initiatives, including "Freedom To Manage," which is designed 
to take a critical look at the agency's rules, regulations 
and procedures, and take steps to make the NASA workforce 
more effective, efficient, and accountable. For the past 25 
years, Stadd has worked in the private and public arenas with 
a primary focus on identifying aerospace and high tech-
related market-driven opportunities. He has held senior 
positions in the U.S. Department of Commerce, the U.S. 
Department of Transportation and the White House.

During his career, Stadd has been associated with the 
emergence of the commercial space transportation, satellite 
remote sensing and commercial space research industry 
sectors, along with the Global Positioning System. He has 
also worked in various capacities with the aerospace 
industry, including co-founding several satellite and space 
transportation organizations.

"Courtney's career has been dedicated to the advancement and 
development of space," concluded Administrator O'Keefe. " His 
insight and expertise and enthusiasm will be missed. I wish 
him the best."

In the late 1970s, Stadd was General Manager of the National 
Space Institute (now called the National Space Society), 
founded by space pioneer Wernher von Braun, which is 
dedicated to promoting public support for the space program.

He has been honored with numerous awards, including the 2002 
U.S. Space Foundation Certificate of Honor, the Washington 
Space Business Roundtable's Public Service Award, the 1994 
American Astronautical Society's Lloyd V. Berkner Award and 
NASA's highest honor—The Distinguished Service Medal.

-end-

                            * * *

 - END OF FILE -
==========

@Message posted automagically by IMTHINGS POST 1.30
---